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<title>hold still my dear (i wont make an incision till you’re nice and numb) by lovelcce</title>
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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29638845">hold still my dear (i wont make an incision till you’re nice and numb)</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/lovelcce/pseuds/lovelcce'>lovelcce</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>i live for you (i long for you) [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Magnus Archives (Podcast)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Gen, but you can definately love the web, faith and love are used as synonyms, im sorry i just love edwin’s character, looking into the entities and how they love, the web doesnt love</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-22</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 20:01:34</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>301</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29638845</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/lovelcce/pseuds/lovelcce</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>“ And so they took it, stole his faith and prayers and sight and senses and- well, now all that was left was a cold prison cell. “</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>The Web (The Magnus Archives)/Edwin Burroughs</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>i live for you (i long for you) [3]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2155737</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>hold still my dear (i wont make an incision till you’re nice and numb)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Seminary had taught him that faith and love were merely interchangable. If you loved, you had faith. If you had faith in the lord above, you love them. And so Father Edwin Burroughs loved his neighbors and the animals and the distant god he had faith in. That he loved. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">Of course he loved. That was his job, to love and love and love until he died with a smile on his face and a prayer on his lips. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“They want your faith,” the girl had said, eyes filled with despair as the father prayed. </span>
</p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">And so they took it, stole his faith and prayers and sight and senses and- well, now all that was left was a cold prison cell. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">And he prayed, though he knew now that it was not god that answered or listened or cared. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I know you,” He said, arms aching as he clasped them together once again. “Please.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <em><span class="s2">Lying is a sin</span> </em>
  <span class="s1">, came the response, not a shout or a whisper. Just the idea of words crawling up his arms. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">The spider in the corner of his cell stared at him with unblinking eyes. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Is this real?” He said, voice dropping quieter. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1"><em><span class="s2">Is what real? </span></em> <span class="s1">the spider blinked slowly, every eye closing on its own. </span></p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“It’s not too late for salvation,” the bishop said, patting Edwin’s arm with mock sympathy. The man’s eyes reflected the light wrong, and- how many eyes had he had before?</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I have my faith.” The father said, swallowing as the bishop stared from the corner. </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“I know you do.” </span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1">
  <span class="s1">“Is it all you wanted?” Edwin looks away to his cell door as the guard passes with a jangle of keys. “My faith.”</span>
</p><p class="p2"> </p><p class="p1"><span class="s2"><em>Everything and more</em></span> <span class="s1">, the spider crawls through its web where the bishop once stood. </span> <em><span class="s2">and more and more.</span></em></p>
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